


Life or Death

by DaniProblemChild



Category: Dracula - Bram Stoker, Vampire Chronicles - Anne Rice
Genre: Angst, Blood Drinking, Comfort, Crossover, F/M, Not Canon Compliant, Tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-01 02:32:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15133157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaniProblemChild/pseuds/DaniProblemChild
Summary: Louis meets Mina in unusual circumstances.Set after Claudia and the attack on Renfield."Have you ever felt like there was something... that you could never be forgiven for?" Her voice sounded somewhat forlorn."Yes, I have." Louis replied without emotion.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own neither the character's from the Vampire Chronicles nor Bram Stokers Dracula. Added note that this might have happened had Van Helsing and company had remained preoccupied with Renfield longer

It had been sometime since Louis had left France with Armand and lost track of him while residing in Britain. 

Night fell and Louis was free to prowl the streets, in search of small animals as usual or the occasional ailing human that had seen their better days. 

It was tonight that Louis was passing a certain house when something uncanny happened. 

A tall man wearing clothes that a usual English gentleman would wear emerged from a window and immediately transformed into a bat, flying away and leaving Louis dumbfounded.

He'd seen many things but had never seen anyone in the form of a human turn into a bat, briefly he recalled how people had reported his brother flying just before he fell down the staircase. 

Although the reports were never confirmed for certain but it was very strange to him.

It was than that Louis brought himself back to the present after realising his attention span had wandered off in the same direction as that of the bat that flew away. 

After exchanging several glances between the house and the direction the bat went Louis finally started off again, only to stop in his tracks at the sound of bitter weeping that was coming from the house. 

Without hesitation Louis went to the window to investigate, in the darkness Louis saw a feminine figure lying face down on a bed, sobbing violently into a pillow and the scent of blood was heavy in the air.

"I have been polluted! My husband shall fear me now and will never love me again!" The woman cried desperately. 

Louis felt moved and understood that she had been attacked by a vampire without her consent. While he was thinking that he gasped involuntarily, his eyes were locked onto the eyes of the woman that had been weeping. 

"I know what you are..." She said softly, causing Louis to feel strangely small.

"Please... please go ahead and take my life away from me, I can't bear the thought of Jonathan knowing what I've become should I live..." Her voice was weak but filled with resolve that made Louis shiver.

He took a step closer to her bed. "Are you certain that you want to die?"

In his observation the woman still seemed strong despite having lost a lot of blood. 

"Yes..." She trailed off and looked intently into his emerald eyes.

He sighed softly and stroked her long, black hair gently. "What is your name?" His voice was hushed while the scent of her blood overwhelmed his senses.

"M-Mina... Mina Harker."

"Mine is Louis." He than bit into her neck just below the freshly made bite marks from the previous perpetrator. 

Mina moaned softly and threaded her fingers through Louis's brunette hair, not thinking about what she was doing.

Louis took his time in savoring the sweet and salty taste of her blood, wondering if it was just his imagination that Mina reminded him somewhat of Babette. 

Usually he would have a person drained of their blood within seconds but this time it was taking longer than ever, Mina's heart was refusing to stop and she was panicking at death's door. 

"Louis... I'm afraid." She spoke up and Louis pulled away, seeing fear reflecting in her eyes that indicated she wasn't ready to die yet. 

Mina's eyes closed but she was still breathing, prompting Louis to sigh in dismay at making such a mistake such as not being as quick and efficient as he normally was.

"I'm sorry, Mina..." He whispered before slicing into his wrist with his fangs, causing him to bleed profusely. 

He held his bleeding wrist to her mouth and encouraged her to drink, which to his surprise she didn't refuse.

He groaned softly as she drank from him.

Louis gently stroked her hand to continue encouraging her. "I know you're afraid but you have a good heart." He murmured quietly. 

Mina than opened her eyes, gasping before doubling over in pain, beginning to transform into her immortal form. 

Louis watched, knowing he was going to have to help her from now on if she allowed him. After several moments Mina became alert.

"I... I must go!" She fled through the window before his eyes and he heard muffled voices at the bedroom door. "Mina! Are you alright?" A male's voice cried out, Louis immediately followed after Mina, intending to catch up with her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mina and Louis are on a ship going to New York City and Mina looks back at her situation.

Mina let out a sigh, reflecting on the events of the last few weeks and regretting multiple decisions that had led up to now, it would have been too easy to have put all the blame on Dracula but she felt she was greatly responsible herself. 

'If only I had not taken that sleeping aid.' She thought to herself as she stood on the deck of the oceanliner that was bound for New York City, wishing that she could see her husband once more but now that was only wishful thinking.

The accounts Jonathan had wrote in his diary chilled her to her core when she was mortal and it still frightened her to think about it.

'Why did I have to become abominable!' She quietly bemoaned while staring at the stars that cast their pearly light onto the dark sea. 

Than a flashback came to her. 

 

Mina was running away from the life that she knew and what she had become only moments before, but no matter how far she ran she still was the same.

It was than that Louis caught up with her, concerned that a rogue vampire would discover her and try to harm her. 

"Mina, it's dangerous for you to be running the streets like this!" Louis grabbed her wrist without thinking, causing Mina to look up at him. 

Her eyes were mournful and Louis loathed himself for what he had done.  
"I'm sorry... I should have died." She looked down and saw that she was still wearing her nightdress, causing a light gasp to escape her lips.

Louis didn't seem to notice what she was wearing but instead the ache in his chest became noticeable because of her words. 

"Please don't say that..." He said quietly, running a hand through her smooth, dark hair.

Mina instinctively closed her eyes, taking in his comforting touch. "It is my punishment for wanting to end my life." She said softly, opening her eyes to meet Louis's gaze.

"Take me away from here." Mina clasped his hand firmly.

Louis nodded slightly, understanding that she was wanting to escape because of the devotional, loyal love she had for her husband. 

 

Mina sighed again as the flashback ended, she wondered if she was pronounced dead yet and how long it would take for Jonathan to get over the shock, if he ever would.

Though in her mind that if he were to find that she was now like the creatures that he feared in the Count's castle, he would never, ever recover from that and that would have been far worse to be despised by her own husband. 

She sighed once more as she pocketed her wedding ring, she would never want him to have to be bound to her as she is now.

"Mina..."

Her name was called and she spun around abruptly, chiding herself for not paying attention. 

"Oh, Louis." Mina relaxed slightly. 

"I apologise for startling you." Louis stepped up and placed his hands on the railing.

They were silent for a long time before Mina raised her voice.

"Have you ever felt like there was something... that you could never be forgiven for?" Her voice sounded somewhat forlorn. 

"Yes, I have." Louis replied without emotion. 

However he slowly took her small hand into his, causing Mina's heart to skip a beat. 

For a long time they stood on the deck together, looking up at the stars.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mina discovers that danger always follows not far behind.

It seemed like it had only been a few minutes but in reality Louis and Mina had been staring at the stars for nearly an hour.

Louis snapped back to his senses and realised he had been holding Mina's hand for quite some time, he felt somewhat shy but he didn't want to let go of her hand.

"I guess we should be heading back to our cabins before the sun rises." He suggested. 

Mina nodded and pulled her hand away from Louis, needing space and also to hold the skirts of her dress while she walked. 

They were walking together along the corridor when suddenly Mina froze in her tracks. 

Louis was uncertain as to what was going through her mind but the look on her face was as if she had become prey.

"What is it Mina?" He asked in a hushed tone.

She was continuing to panic as she attempted to form a sentence. "Him.... I must hide!" 

Frantically she turned and fled, hurrying in the other direction. 

Louis was baffled but followed her anyway. 

They had nearly made it to the other end of the corridor when Mina halted again with a sharp gasp.

"Impossible!" Immediately she turned and ran straight into Louis by accident. 

"Oof!" Louis had stumbled against a wall but quickly regained his footing. "What's going on?" 

He didn't know what had Mina distressed.

"We're trapped!" She cried, sinking down onto the floor.

"What do you mean?" Louis knelt down beside her. "A-Abraham Van Helsing is toward the end of that corridor...." Mina trailed off while pointing in the direction they had just came from, "and the Count is at the end of that corridor!" 

Her face was clouded over with gloom but Louis tried to remain calm. 

He took her hand and stood her up, leading her in the direction they were headed down before, but Mina dug in her heels. 

"I'm not going..." She murmured stubbornly but Louis was not about to give up.

"Mina, please trust me." He urged her until she finally gave in, although reluctantly. 

Louis didn't really know Abraham Van Helsing but he preferred to take his chances on his life around him rather than the Count, whom he'd heard Mina speak of. 

Seconds seemed more like hours and Louis finally made it to his cabin, Mina's cabin was farther down the corridor so he decided she would be safer with him. 

Again he wished that he'd taken Lestat's advice about staying in the same quarters as your companion. 

To his surprise Mina didn't complain about being in the same room as him. 

Though she seemed extremely pale since the anxiety of discovering that she had not left behind certain problems and knew this could even turn into something far worse than she had imagined. 

"What if they find us here?" Mina asked, trying to mask her nervousness. Louis looked at her uneasily, not wanting to make her feel any worse but he had no other choice but to put it bluntly. 

"I don't know. But I do know there is no escape until we get on land." Mina shivered slightly and remained silent, knowing that they were going to have to tough this out together. 

Than another sickening thought came to her mind, what if Jonathan was here on the ship with Van Helsing?


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis gives Mina something that is special to him.

Louis observed Mina's expression, which looked to be a mixture of anxious tension and sorrow.

It appeared that stray clouds had been hiding the moon for sometime and finally ceased to obscure the moon's light because when the moon peeked out the rays leaked through the window, causing Mina to shriek in surprise, thinking that the mist that Dracula had appeared in before was manifesting in the cabin.

Louis noticed that she was skittish and spoke up in a comforting voice. "It's alright Mina, it's only the moon showing her face." 

Upon realising that he was right she seated herself on the bed that was in the ship's cabin. "I'm sorry..." 

"It's fine." Louis reassured her. 

He had no idea what laid in store for both of them but he knew he wasn't going to leave her alone, he did feel responsible for her but strangely he felt more than that when he was with her, perhaps she had a calming effect on him but than again she made him nervous as well. 

Louis shook his head, he would have time to figure this out later, besides he couldn't compete with her husband who seemed to be the center of Mina's world although he couldn't blame her, and more than likely she hated him in his mind. 

With that thought fresh in his mind he sighed while reaching into his pocket, pulling out the rosary that he kept as a reminder of his late brother Paul. 

Mina looked at him with piqued curiosity. "What is that?"

"It's a special rosary... what I mean is it is special to me." Louis corrected himself and handed it to her. 

For a long moment she stared at the necklace than back at Louis with a questioning look on her face. 

Louis became fearful that she would get the wrong idea and what little bond they had would dissipate. "It's for protection, I believe you'd said that someone told you that the Count could not withstand seeing such things as this." 

Louis straightened the hem of his shirt sleeve and continued awkwardly while Mina listened. "So I wanted you to wear this for protection." 

"Oh..." Mina looked surprised as she held the talisman against her chest. "Thank you. You are really kind." 

She smiled and Louis was rendered immobile for a few seconds before coming to.

"It's not a problem." He replied with a wistful look, partly because he thought she should not think of him as kind and the beauty of her smile had somewhat saddened him.

Mina put the rosary around her neck than asked a question. 

"Why doesn't it affect us?" It puzzled her and Louis had never thought about it. 

"I don't know." He shrugged vaguely. 

Louis's gaze shifted to the window, noting that dawn was starting to break.

He quickly closed the curtains and had just remembered that Mina's coffin was in her cabin. 

He than turned to Mina. "You will have to use my coffin until we can figure things out." 

Her eyes widened at his words. 

"But where will you be?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis ends up sharing his coffin with Mina.

Louis looked at her blankly. "On the bed." 

"Nonsense, don't be so foolish, I've troubled you so much. I will stay on the bed." Mina had a fiery look in her eyes as she spoke, sending a shiver down Louis's spine.

"No, you have not troubled me at all. Besides you are my responsibility." He raised the lid to his coffin, but Mina didn't move.

"You shouldn't have to take full responsibility. We are only trying to survive so why don't we be responsible together?" Her tone was somewhat feisty and it reminded him somewhat of Lestat. 

Louis had a feeling that she wasn't going to give up so he gave in with a sigh, feeling misgivings about sharing a coffin with a married woman.

"After you..." He indicated but she still wasn't buying it. 

"No, I'm going to make sure you get in first." Mina's eyes still continued to hold a brazen look that made Louis nervous. 

It had not ocurred to him to trick her but he wasn't going to do that lest she should resent him even more than what she might have already. 

With no other choice he stepped into his coffin and sat down, holding his hand out to Mina to help her into it as well. Carefully she stepped inside and lied down, trying to make herself as small as possible. 

Louis lowered the lid and turned to face the wall of his coffin to try to make sure there was enough room for the two of them. 

It was than that he realised that his heart was pounding wildly and he hoped that Mina wasn't paying attention to him. 

Mina never said another word and was soon asleep facing in the opposite direction of Louis. It was not long after Mina fell asleep that Louis joined her in sleep, even though little did he know that his unconscious body had gradually turned throughout the day to face Mina's back and his hand reached around her waist, clasping her hand in his and intertwining his cold fingers with her's.

Neither of them were aware of the change in positions and neither had any idea that Mina was smiling unconsciously and that Louis was feeling safe with her.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mina overhears a conversation.

Mina awoke the next evening with a start, feeling a sensation that was comforting to her. 

Her hand was being held and the feeling of a body behind her, holding her close made her relax. 

"Jonathan?" She said aloud hopefully. 

Mina slowly turned around, only to see her brunette sire lying behind her with a peaceful expression on his face.

Her heart seemed to tug and yearn inside her chest and more confusing feelings were bubbling up within her. 

She sighed and carefully exited the coffin, hoping that she didn't wake Louis.

Little did she know that Louis had heard her call her husband's name and was doing his best to remain still as to not frighten her. 

Mina proceeded to change into another black dress, signifying that she was in mourning for the humanity that she felt she had lost. 

She than put her long dark hair in an updo and put on an elegant dark hat to match her dress. 

Mina than sat down on the bed and waited for Louis to awaken, which may have been about ten minutes later. He emerged from the coffin and got out. 

"Good... e-evening, Louis." Mina stammered nervously, still not used to getting up at night.

"Good evening, Mina." Louis replied, seeming to have the faint traces of a smile on his face. 

They made eye contact for a quick moment before they both turned away. 

"I think we need to..." Louis trailed off and Mina nodded in acknowledgement, knowing that he was meaning that they needed to go out and feed, it seemed he was just as uncomfortable with mentioning it as she was and that gave her another reason to like him. 

Mina was nervous about leaving the cabin, but the only other option was to starve and Louis wasn't going to allow that to happen to her.

They both left Louis' cabin in silence and headed towards the deck, taking care to draw as little attention to themselves as possible.

Mina found herself wanting to hold his hand but she refrained from making the first move, after all she still felt loyal to her husband but also she felt an invisible pull to her sire, though she told herself it was probably just a friendship bond. 

Louis had darted off to catch something, leaving her alone for a short moment, listening to familiar voices. 

"Look, we can't just break into every room on this ship to determine who has a coffin in their room!" Mina's heart leapt and sank simultaneously at the sound of her husband's voice. 

The sudden outburst was followed by a loud sigh. 

"There should be a way to track that devil down, people have been disappearing and we must get him before we are the only one's left to disembark from the ship." Van Helsing stated seriously. 

The older man than shifted the subject to Jonathan. 

"Jonathan, you are a very courageous man to have wanted to accompany me to help track down and kill this heartless devil. I still think you should have stayed behind with Dr. Seward to have evaluated your health but I understand why you didn't and I admire you greatly for it." Jonathan stayed silent for a long moment.

"I wanted to avenge the death of my wife, even though I am very frightened of the Count but he destroyed my life in more ways than one and I feel it's my responsibility to find justice for her." 

Mina's heart felt as if it was literally breaking, 'Alas my poor husband!' Feeling distressed she immediately turned to flee, getting about a few hundred yards from where the men were speaking, only to hear the last voice that she would ever want to hear in her lifetime. 

"My beautiful Mina, where are you going?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After an encounter with Dracula, Mina wants to know where the enemy sleeps.

A range of things seemed to happen within seconds, from Louis leaving his fledgling for a moment to the conversation Mina had overheard between Van Helsing and Jonathan, to nearly running into the Count himself. 

The tall dark figure of Dracula stood before Mina, seeming to tower above her but he kept his distance. Mina unconsciously felt around her neck to be reassured that the rosary was still there, which it was. She looked at Dracula with sharp, indignation filled eyes. 

A strong feeling of contempt and pity for the Count whirled through her as she started to open her mouth.

Mina was suddenly startled by an arm wrapping around her waist in a possessive matter and drawing her near. 

"I'm afraid you are mistaken, because she's with me. So please excuse us." Louis murmured quietly, looking at Dracula seriously before leading Mina away from the scene, ignoring the arrogant vampire's glowering look.

Her heart had gone into a dance the entire time that Louis held her close and she felt disappointed when he released her as if it was nothing, although he could not hide the flush on his face.

"I'm sorry about that." Louis apologised, looking down at the ground. 

"Don't be... I mean thank you for helping me." Mina attempted to hide her flustered feelings and thought she'd caught a glimpse of a smile on Louis' face, though it was gone as soon as it had appeared. 

The rest of the evening went by without much incident but Mina was still bothered about the disappearing people and Jonathan being intent on killing the Count, fearing that he would lose his own life on account of her. 

Finally Mina and Louis went back into the cabin they were sharing, where Mina began pacing the floor nervously, trying to conceive a plan. 

Louis looked on with concern. "Is something wrong, Mina?" 

She paced for a few more steps before coming to a complete stop. "I must find out where Dracula is hiding." She declared. 

Louis was caught by surprise. "Why?" His voice was muted as if he was divulging a secret within his question.

"Because we should know where the enemy is staying, he could be closer than we think." Mina sat down beside Louis on the bed.

"How do you intend to find out?" Louis looked straight ahead at the wall before them.

"Well, I imagine he has already been following us as it is, so I plan to start with an outpost at our own door to keep a lookout for if and when he retires for the day." She smoothed out her dress as she spoke, noting that Louis was looking tense. 

"But what if he discovers where you are staying while we discover his whereabouts?" His hand was unconsciously reaching for her's.

"That is a chance I have to take. Who is to say that he doesn't already know where I am?" Mina pointed out shakily. 

Louis nodded quietly, recalling how she reminded him of Babette's resolve and determination after she had taken over the Freneire estate. 

Mina interrupted his thoughts when she abruptly stood and went to the door, opening it slowly and cautiously. 

Louis followed her and stood beside the door, feeling like every aspect of the word suspicious but Mina had her mind made up so he might as well join her.

"You don't have to." She looked up at him pleadingly. 

"This can also be 'our responsibility'." Louis replied softly. Mina sighed and waited, watching out for the Count while Louis leaned against the door facing, watching in the opposite direction.

Morning was drawing near and there was no sign of the Count. 

Mina kept stealing glances at Louis and the clock on the wall, the Roman numerals said six-twelve in the morning and Mina was aware that they would have to retire for the day soon. 

Suddenly she caught sight of Dracula's silhouette as he went in a room two doors away from their own room, the vampire seemed to be in a hurry and was oblivious to the two vampires that were standing at the doorway of their own room. 

Mina turned away gleefully, but she tripped on her dress and fell to the ground with a thud.

"Oof!" She quickly stood and waited for Louis to move away from the door so she could close it but he didn't move.

"Louis?" There was no answer. 

Mina than found that he had already fell into his death sleep while leaning against the door facing.

She held her hands up in despair briefly before deciding that she would drag him to his coffin. 

With the help of preternatural strength she was able to get him out of the doorway, shutting and locking the door behind them. 

Mina carefully placed him in the coffin and debated on going in or not, knowing that he would probably be upset if he found out that she didn't sleep in the coffin as well. 

She sighed loudly and followed suit, stepping in and closing the coffin lid behind her, almost immediately falling asleep while trying to mull over a plan.


End file.
